Data loss and hacks – how to protect your school
A recent Government study into online security breaches in education settings found that 75% of further education colleges, 58% of secondary schools and 36% of primary schools fall foul of cyber-attacks in a year. With a quarter (26%) of further education colleges experiencing incidents at least once a week, it is a growing problem for the education sector.
These hacks are not only frustrating, disrupting services and increasing workloads, but can be a costly experience.
A third (33%) of further education colleges, a third (33%) of secondary schools and a quarter (24%) of primary schools lose data, control of services or even money – with victims lucky to restore even a half of their losses after an attack.
What can you do to protect your school?
When it comes to protecting your school, prevention is vital. The only way to really stop losing data, files or finances is to prevent a cyber-attack in the first place by minimising the risk. If you want to lock out hackers, follow this easy five-step process to prevent your school from falling victim to a cyber-attack.
Staff training
Human error is one of the top reasons that cyber-attacks occur, whether it is a lack of knowledge, which means that a staff member inadvertently opens a phishing email or downloads a link with malware, or not using the IT systems that have been put in place correctly.
Ongoing and regular training is essential in equipping staff with the right skills to prevent a cyber-attack.
You can spend thousands of pounds on a specialist IT system, but if it is not used correctly, it will be rendered worthless.
Understand how staff work
Understanding how different staff use technology makes it easier to spot weaknesses so that you can put measures in place.
Talk to everyone from the head teacher to teaching assistants to find out how they access their work, store files, create passwords and their understanding of cyber risks.
Don’t presume everyone has the same level of experience
Everyone will have a different level of understanding of cyber security. You can provide relevant training and up-to-date information by understanding gaps in knowledge.
Put in place realistic policies
Once you understand how people work and their challenges, it is easier to provide relevant advice and put realistic policies that will make a difference.
Unless everyone is following the security procedures, they will not work. Make sure that staff understand how and why they need to back up work regularly, understand what to look out for with phishing emails, fake messages designed to trick people into giving away sensitive information and report any suspicious activity or alert messages.
Check for faults
Making sure staff back up and use the security policies you have in place correctly will minimise any risk of human error but keeping a check on your hardware and software is also essential.
Regular IT program checks, equipment reviews and updates will pick up any errors or malware so that they can be quickly fixed before escalating.
If you are worried your school isn’t doing enough to prevent a cyber-attack, or you want to see how well your security measures stack up, Halchax offers a FREE Health Check Service for schools across the country.
Our IT experts will come into your school and look at what you have in place currently to see how we can increase your security and make it safer for your school. We will work with you to get the best result within your school budget.
Halchax can offer advice about what you can do to keep your schools safe from cyber-attacks or incidents. We explain some of the primary cyber security risks schools face and How they could be targeted. We also offer ongoing support either online or in person in times of uncertainty.
To book your FREE School Security Health Check get in touch today: 0330 102 7464 or info@halchax.co.uk
